Wheels for Wellbeing welcome the government’s announcement on pavement parking regulations.
While we are disappointed that a full ban with exemptions will not be implemented across England, if implemented well, measures proposed to enable local government to restrict and enforce against pavement parking have huge potential. Strong local action against pavement obstruction would massively improve the accessibility of our communities for Disabled people, including families and older people.
We call on the government to ensure that new regulations include:
- A clear, enforceable definition of “unreasonable obstruction”, co-produced with Disabled people, and that covers a full range of pavement locations and contexts.
- Provision for fixed and mobile camera enforcement of obstruction and for public reporting of obstruction, comparable to existing civil parking permit enforcement and “Operation Snap” driving offence enforcement.
- Provision to enforce against heavier vehicles parking on pavements even where direct physical obstruction by the vehicle does not result, to reduce long-term pavement obstruction caused by progressive damage to pavement surfaces.
